Kamaka Hepa (Inupiaq) ties his career high with 15 points as No. 4 Texas defeats K-State, 82-67

AUSTIN, Texas — Junior forward Kamaka Hepa (Inupiaq) tied his career high with 15 points to lead No. 4/4 Texas (11-2, 5-1) to an 82-67 victory against Kansas State on Saturday night at the Frank Erwin Center. Hepa, who had seen action in just three of UT’s first 12 games and played a combined total of 8:15, knocked down a career-best 5-of-8 from three-point range and added three rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal in 26 minutes.

The Longhorns had just eight available scholarship players for Saturday’s contest, as Greg Brown, Brock Cunningham and Kai Jones were not available for the game. Junior guard Andrew Jones tallied a game-high 19 points (7-12 FG, 4-8 threes) and six rebounds. Senior forward Jericho Sims posted 14 points (6-7 FG) and seven boards, while junior guard Courtney Ramey added 14 points (5-7 FG, 3-3 FT) and a season-high nine assists against just two turnovers.

The Longhorns jumped out to a 10-2 lead following a Ramey jumper with 15:34 remaining and never trailed in the contest. Tied at 12-12 at the 12:59 mark, Texas went on an 18-0 run over the next seven minutes to build a 30-12 advantage after an Andrew Jones three-pointer with 5:57 left.

Texas converted 57.1-percent (16-28) from the floor, including a 7-of-15 (.467) mark from three-point range, and held the Wildcats to 30-percent (9-30) field goal shooting, including a 4-of-12 (.333) mark from beyond the arc, while building a 44-24 halftime cushion. Jones had 13 of his 19 points and Ramey registered 12 of his 14 points in the opening half.

The Longhorns opened the second half with a 10-2 spurt to build a 54-26 advantage following a basket at the 17:06 mark by senior forward Royce Hamm Jr. UT’s lead did not dip below 20 points until the final two minutes of the contest.